WARRIORS: L I F E L I N E S : Book 1: Twelve Sunrises
by NlKNAK
Summary: Fawnpaw's nose crinkled as a sudden scent hit her full in the face, quickly sending the apprentice gagging from the rancid odor now assaulting her faculties. Recoiling back, the she-cat exaggeratedly flopped on to her side and place both paws over her muzzle. "Oh, ugg, what in StarClan's name is that scent?" "That," Her mentor began grimly. "would be a corpse."


Hello, this is the first installment of Warrior: Lifelines. This takes place in a hill country some place adjacent to the original forest with four original clans. Stories of the original forest may be referred to in passing, vaguely most times and sometime incorrectly. Please note that is not a folly of the author but a show of how stories and words can get misconstrued or tangled in retelling.

I would very much enjoy feedback. It has been a while since I've had time to sit down and write a serious piece, so it may be a bit rusty at first, bare with me. I promise to improve!

Now, onto the story! Please enjoy: WARRIORS: LIFELINES: TWELVES SUNRISES

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WARRIORS: LIFELINES

Twelve Sunrises

PROLOGUE

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**For as many legends as the Clans have had, the majority of the heroes therein have been strong, respected, well-loved warriors of great prowess. I never took much stock in the exaggerated tales of flame colored pelts and suspicious sources of strength, long sorted journeys or sneaky raids. But, maybe, just maybe, I should have paid a little more attention to the heroes of old…and how they survived their respective tales.**

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_StoneClan Camp / Moon High_

The wind was still and all was silent as the bright scratch of the moon rose into Silver Pelt above. The thin moonlight threw its self upon the glossy, rolling moors. Spot lighting a dense collection of rocks upon a well guarded hill. Despite the slight chill in the air and stale evening air, StoneClan camp was abuzz with excitement. Cats had taken to their respective nests in an act of rest, but their whispers and restless fidgeting was the background to which new life would be brought forth into the world. For Mousewhisker was giving birth.

The elderly queen was the prize of the clan, she had given StoneClan its strength when all else seemed lost. Mousewhisker was a strong she-cat, battle scared and stern, but she loved kits and loved her service to StoneClan so very much. She had fought more battles than any other cat within the clan and had a strong reputation among the other two clans of the Moors as such. All knew of loyal Mousewhisker, brave Mousewhisker. They also knew of her soft spot for the younger tom cats. This litter's father was a young one, or so it was rumored. In truth, only Mousewhisker knew the identity of the father of StoneClan newest, and most anticipated, litter.

Berrystar sat hunched over in the entrance of the nursery, a deep embankment between a trio of boulders, protected by a tangle of vines and lush leaves, worrying the supple leaves to pieces. The leader didn't have the strongest stomach for kitting. She also wasn't exactly excited with the prospect of her mother giving birth once again, for kitting is a hard process on the body and Mousewhisker was not as young as she use to be.

A deep, amused purr resounded from inside the nursery drawing the leaders' attention. "If you are not going to come in, Berrystar, my darling, then do depart would you. Your anxiety is only going to affect the kittens and our dear medicine cats. This is Aspenpaw's first kitting after all."

The white leader scrunched up her nose and huffed a little as she shifted uncomfortably on her paws. She was sitting at an awkward angle at the top most part of the embankment, which had her body pitching over and forward to look into the gloom below. The scruffy StoneClan leader could see only the vaguest of outlines and was ever-so-slowly leaning further and further over. Her hunched over position only served to make Berrystar feel as if she was about to fall over to be swallowed into the depth of the nursery like a piece of prey in a predators mouth.

From somewhere within the shadows, Mousewhisker sighed heavily and clicked her tongue. "Go away daughter-of-mine. Go get some rest, you sound as dead on your paws as you look. StarClan has not taken me yet, they will not take me tonight." Her voice was edged with challenge and pride.

"No, mother, it is my duty to watch over the kitting and be of," she swallowed hard, "assistance should it be requested of me." Berrystar mewed dutifully, ignoring the turning over of her stomach as she said such.

"Berrystar, there is not a soul in this camp who would ask you to help in anyway. You do not have the stomach for it. Besides, we have to capable medicine cats at our disposal. Let them do their job." Mousewhisker rolled her eyes at the huff she received from her daughter and said into the night. "Kits never do quite grow up, always petulant to their dying day."

Aspenpaw stirred beside the queen. A paw lighted on Mousewhisker's lower stomach and the medicine cat apprentice's tail began twitching in time with each pulse. Bright green eyes glowed in the low light, flashing from the entrance where Berrystar sat to the brown and white she-cat at her paws. Mousewhisker had already eaten the borage and daisy leaves, with a little luck, this kitting shouldn't be too terribly taxing on the queen. "It's almost time," She mewed softly, making each cat jump with a start. "Sorry," She murmured and stepped away from Mousewhisker as her mentor, Whitewing, moved forward.

The white tom shuffled past Aspenpaw, her eyes flashed up to his face, which was contorted in thought. His blue eyes seemed far away, pupils dilated, left ear twitching restlessly. She noted how his long black legs seemed to disappear in the shadows of the den, making him look like a floating body, head, and tail. She resisted a shiver at the picture it made in her mind. Whitewing sat with his back to them now, down near Mousewhisker's tail, unfolding herbs and seeds and sorting them methodically.

"Well?" Berrystar asked.

"Well what?" Mousewhisker answered snappishly. "Kits don't just poof into-o- oh my, yes well, that is the start of it!"

Indeed, it was the start of a very long night for medicine cat and apprentice. Mousewhisker was an old cat. Thinned by age and weakened by injuries of her youth. She had wanted to leave her clan with at least one last hope. Over the seasons, StoneClan had begun to fade. Mousewhisker was the only queen, presently, and had been for many moons since her announcement. No new kits had been born for far too long and it was wearing on the clan. Especially as their apprentices were nearly warriors now. More worrying was that warriors were ageing out to elders, yet, the clan simply could not afford to let them retire. So fight on they did.

The clan stirred as Berrystar backed out of the nursery and began to pace a trench in the middle of camp. Her father and various siblings were at her side ready to wait out the night, none ready to sleep. The air was still and every sound carried around StoneClan camp like a thunderous echo. Clan mates huddled together, some reminiscing while others exchanged bets on litter size and genders. As one entity, one family, StoneClan bounded over the soon-to-be arrivals.

Inside the nursery, there was much less positivity. Mousewhisker whimpered in pain as Whitewing applied too much pressure to her belly. Aspenpaw's green eyes were wide and bright in the dark. They were zeroed in on her mentor, observing the way his paws shook as he pressed high on the queen's belly, attempting to coax the kits into the world.

As the first kitten was pushed into the world, Aspenpaw, a flash of white and ginger, was tugging it gently out and away. Whitewing muttered something in his deep crackling voice but the apprentice could not distinguish his words, thankfully she knew what to do from his lectures. With her teeth she carefully broke the sack and furiously scrubbed the tom-kit's fur with her tongue, running it against the direction of growth. The tom kit squealed something fierce and Aspenpaw balked, fearing she had hurt him.

Mousewhisker gave an encouraging purr and Aspenpaw, realizing the kit was just fine, half rolled half carried the pudgy ball of fur and fat to his mother's belly to suckle. He was so small, Aspenpaw thought watching him come to life, and he would probably be the biggest of the litter. The medicine cat apprentice eyed the queen, she was thin and frail and was looking her age. The stress of the past few moons had worn on her, as it had many of the other cats in her clan. Whitewing made an odd hissing noise and Aspenpaw jerked around to look up at him. At his paws was another kit, still in the sack, and he was just staring at it with the most horrified look on his face. Quietly, Aspenpaw snuck around him. There was nothing inherently wrong; nothing looked out of place with this kit. So she quickly nipped the sack open and began to rub life into the kit. He said nothing if he noticed her, only continued to stare, fear-scent rising off him in waves.

Aspenpaw took the she-kit away from her mentor and place her at Mousewhisker's belly. The she-cat was wide eyed at the fear-scent wafting over them. "She's fine," Aspenpaw murmured leaving the kit to her mother and working on the third as it made its appearance. Another tom-kit.

"Wh-what is he…doing, Aspenpaw?" Mousewhisker panted.

"Nothing," She replied between licks.

"But he is just sitting there…" Her voice was edged with outrage and concern.

Aspenpaw hummed deep in her throat. "As I said, he is doing nothing. Focus on me now. There are at least two more. Push, you're doing well." Aspenpaw's green eyes were hard and distant as she looked over her shoulder at her mentor. Mousewhisker was delirious enough that she probably would not remember Whitewing's odd actions, but Aspenpaw would, most certainly.

By the start of the fourth kitten, Mousewhisker was almost gone. She huffed and whimpered in pain, the kitting was become too much for her old body. But still she pressed on and Aspenpaw was beside her. A gentle touch was all she could offer as she focused on the kits and keeping the queen from bleeding out as much as could be helped. She passed a wet ball of mass to the queen who gratefully slurped up what liquid she could.

It was suppose to be Aspenpaw who would hold the moss ball above the queen's dry tongue as it dripped water into her mouth. It was to be Aspenpaw would talk Mousewhisker through and administer the herbs at her mentor's behest. Aspenpaw was just to do as instructed. Whitewing was supposed to be calling the shots, showing and telling his apprentice tips and tricks. Whitewing was supposed to be there, helping, overseeing, and maybe letting Aspenpaw put lecture into application. He was supposed to be in control. Now it was she, Aspenpaw, apprentice, who was suddenly thrust into control, doing the whole thing on her own. Why was Whitewing acting so odd? This wasn't like her usually steady and straightforward mentor. Sure Aspenpaw had faith in her own skills, she was a serious study, but the young cat was dealing with so many new elements…

"Whitewing…I need something…something for the pain, please." Mousewhisker panted her voice almost too low to hear.

For the first time since the kitting had started, Whitewing came to life. His dark eyes glowed dimly as his broad head swung around. "R-right, for the pain, yes…let's just…let's just see what we have."

Heaving himself to his paws, Whitewing moved to his bundle of herbs. He sat over the leaf bundle, eyes flickering to and fro over the collected items. His body was horribly tense as he reached forward with a shaking paw, sorted herbs, and then reconsidered. He made this motion several times before finally settling on something and moving up to Mousewhisker's face.

Without taking her eyes off the kitten before her, Aspenpaw tracked the tom as he moved, monitored Mousewhisker's accelerated heart beat, and kept the kits suckling at their mother's belly. She couldn't afford to let anything go amiss or escape her notice. "Mousewhisker, push." Aspenpaw licked her lips. This wasn't going to be pleasant. The kitten, from what she could see, was at an angle, and what was worse, she saw a tail.

"Whitewing, it's breach, I need…oh no-"The stench of the herb hit her full in the face. The berries on the little leaf were dull and wrinkled at the edges, those spoiled juniper berries would surely upset the queen further. "Don't eat those Mousewhisker," She said evenly, quietly. Her sudden voice made both cats start.

"Oh, oh dear," Whitewing whispered and quickly pulled the berries away from the delirious queen. "These, swallow these instead they will…be more effective than the berries." The tom left Mousewhisker to eat the poppy seed and raspberry leaves and pulled himself to the corner of the den.

"Whitewing…the kit it's…" she looked to her mentor, she had only the vaguest notion of what to do, and she desperately needed guidance. Nipping a sack open was one thing but this… Yet, the tom either didn't hear her or was fit it ignore her plea. "It's in my paws then," Aspenpaw took a deep breath and sent a prayer to any ancestor listening before focusing on the kitten, she would bring it into this world safely, she had to.

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**This was truly the beginning of something bigger than all of us. I felt it in my bones. Something was being set in motion. But if someone had told me I would be at the center fold of it all, I would have fed them enough poppy seeds to knock them out for a moon and called them a loon.**

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NOTES: That was too fun to write. It was pretty easy, flow wise. I don't think Whitewing was depicted as I was anticipating, but, all will be explained soon.

Please Review~ See y'all at Chapter One~


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